阅读下面短文,在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
With a population of 602 ,000 , Luxembourg is one of the richest and smallest1.( country) in Europe ,yet it suffers from major traffic jams.
Taking up 2, 586 square kilometers, Luxembourg is roughly the size of Rhode Island. From the capital of Luxembourg City , Belgium, France and Germany can all2.( reach) by car in half an hour. High housing costs, especially in Luxembourg City , mean more than 180 ,000 of its workforce commute( 通勤) from those neighboring nations every day. Luxembourg is a very3.( attract) place for jobs ,4.its “booming economy" and high concentration of jobs have led to congestion(拥塞) issues. In 2016 , Luxembourg had 662 cars per 1 ,000 people, and driving is a “primary means of transportation ”for commuters. That year , drivers in Luxembourg City5.(spend) an average of 33 hours in traffic. It fared6. ( bad) than European cities Copenhagen and Helsinki , which have comparable population sizes to all of Luxembourg, yet it only took drivers in both an average of 24 hours in traffic.
But that could be about to change. 7.country at this very moment is in really good shape , thus the government wants the people to benefit8. the good economy. As of March 1 ,2020 all public transport—trains, trams and buses- -in the country is now free,9.( make) it the first free public transport country in the world. However,the new scheme can signal important changes ahead10.it comes to Luxembourg’s reliance on driving.
Everyone should go to his or her 50th high school reunion. There was a time I thought I’d never go even if the opportunity _______. But now I feel _______for people who don’t go.
I went to the _______of my high school on a Saturday evening, and I am glad I did. It was a gift to recognize some _______classmates right away — and to be recognized. _______, we had name tags and our _______photos on our clothing to help identify us. I recognized one woman immediately!
The most memorable and moving experience of the night was _______by a schoolmate and neighbor to whom I was once close. Unfortunately, we had a falling out in the high school. I never saw her after _______, but this time, I saw her name on a place setting. At first, I feared that I would _______her. But my better self won over, and I __________ her out. I kept looking until I got a(n) __________on my shoulder. There she was __________. We hugged as if nothing had ever __________and exchanged affectionate words. When the party __________, my old-new friend walked towards me, __________me again and wished me well. I returned her good wishes. All the bad __________melted into thin air.
I am grateful I had this __________to reunite with old classmates. After all, we are almost __________the final lap of our lifelong journeys. Some classmates had already left this __________, and their names were deleted from the list. Sometimes we have to walk back into the past because time does heal old wounds. We’re not the __________people. We are better people.
1.A.came down B.came up C.came through D.came off
2.A.sorry B.happy C.excited D.moved
3.A.competition B.reunion C.exhibition D.concert
4.A.latter B.former C.present D.future
5.A.Unluckily B.Unwillingly C.Normally D.Thankfully
6.A.old B.recent C.modern D.new
7.A.described B.provided C.promised D.ordered
8.A.graduation B.invitation C.retirement D.punishment
9.A.stare at B.turn to C.run into D.rely on
10.A.let B.drove C.sought D.pushed
11.A.instruction B.blow C.kiss D.tap
12.A.reading B.singing C.smiling D.dancing
13.A.happened B.changed C.disappeared D.mentioned
14.A.began B.ended C.continued D.lasted
15.A.encouraged B.praised C.hugged D.judged
16.A.news B.scores C.excuses D.memories
17.A.qualification B.situation C.talent D.chance
18.A.missing B.destroying C.nearing D.wasting
19.A.world B.city C.school D.class
20.A.important B.serious C.successful D.same
Experienced⁃Based Education
Everyone is familiar with traditional education. You sit in a class and a teacher teaches. This is an important part of development. But at some point, every individual has to take charge of their own education. To do this, one must look at the root of learning.1.
Basically, unfamiliar experiences usually add more value than experiences that are familiar.
2. And we are in a better state to learn something new. Honestly, someone who never experiences the same thing twice will never have a chance to benefit from anything learned. However, new experiences are generally what make people interesting and push them to grow.
High school is a new experience. College is a new experience. However, at some point traditional education becomes repetitive. It is not that you won’t learn anything else, but that the environment is so familiar.3.
To solve this, an individual needs to introduce new experiences into their life. You may spend a summer in a different part of the country or learn a new language through trial and error. You can also go to a drive⁃in movie(or some other entertainment event that is new to you).4.
These types of experiences often result in very little“book knowledge”. Instead, they will often provide you with a better understanding of yourself as you experience your reaction to different situations.5. It can be invaluable for you to work effectively with others. Becoming a well ⁃ rounded human isn’t something that happens by accident. You can spend your entire lifetime developing your potential.
A.Has education changed so much in the last decade?
B.They will also provide you with a better understanding of others.
C.Those new experiences may not lead to great personal development.
D.These are all things that can stretch and expand your experience in life.
E.This is because unfamiliar experiences require much more of our attention.
F.As a result, you can easily become less aware of your experience and not learn as much.
G.What makes some experiences add great value to our lives while other experiences do not?
If you are reading this, you were probably born in the 2000s. The oh-ohs. The 21st century. That would make you young, creative, connected, global, and no doubt smart. Maybe good-looking, too. Right? But what do other people think about your generation?
Some adults worry that you’re more interested in the screen in front of you than the world around you. They think of you as the “face-down generation” because you use your phone so much and they wonder how you will deal with school, friends, and family. Are today’s teenagers too busy texting and taking selfies to become successful in real life—or “IRL”, as you would say?
Other adults worry that today’s youth are spoilt and don’t want to face the challenges of adult life. Many children born in the 1990s and 2000s were raised by “helicopter parents", who were always there to guide and help their children with a busy schedule filled with homework and after-class activities such as dancing, drawing, or sports. With parents who do everything for them, today’s youth seem to prefer to live like teenagers even when they are in their 20s or 30s.
With these taken into account, does the face down generation need a warning? Well, probably not. The fact is that many of today’s teenagers are better educated and more creative than past generations. They seem to be enthusiastic and willing to be become leaders. More young people than ever volunteer to help their communities. There are also brave young people such as Malala Yousafzai, the teenager who won the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize for pushing girls’ rights to go to school.
So if you’re one of the oh-ohs, there are reasons to be hopeful about the future. Things are looking up for the face-down generation. Chances are that you will do GR8 (great) and LOL (laugh out loud).
1.Which of the following words can not be used to describe the oh-ohs?
A.Creative. B.Caring.
C.Ignorant. D.Intelligent.
2.What does the underlined phrase “helicopter parents” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A.parents who are rich and travel by helicopter.
B.parents who always watch over their children.
C.parents who have a very busy schedule.
D.parents who only turn up when necessary.
3.What can we learn from the passage?
A.The writer is a member of the face-down generation.
B.The writer is optimistic about the future of the oh-ohs.
C.The oh-ohs are more good-looking than their parents.
D.The oh-ohs care about nothing other than their phones.
4.What can be a best title for the passage?
A.The “helicopter parents” B.The over-worried parents
C.The spoiled generation D.The face-down generation
We've certainly seen a dog nursing a wound, or a deer calling out in pain. But many animals suffer in silence. The most silent sufferers in the animal world may be fish.
Do fish feel pain? A new study from the University of Liverpool has found that fish feel pain in a way that's "strikingly similar" to humans. For the study, Lynne Sneddon, from the university's Institute of Integrative Biology, reviewed the existing body of research 98 studies in all and concluded that they feel pain just as sharply as we do."
When subject to a potentially painful event, fish show changes in behavior such as stopping feeding and reduced activity, which are prevented when a pain-relieving drug is provided. In fact, like us, they breathe heavily and stop eating when they're hurting. They will even rub the part of their body that aches." Sneddon notes in a university release.
To understand pain in other species, scientists look at nociceptors (疼痛感受器), which send signals to the brain when the body is being damaged. Humans have them throughout their skin, bones and muscles. Nociceptors have also been found in many other species, including even those tiny fruit flies.
Fish have the same means to detect pain signals and the equipment to receive them. Besides, the fishermen's opinion that fish feel no pain just doesn't add up from an evolutionary view. Pain is an efficient messenger that tells, us that we've got a problem. An animal that can't feel it won't get that memo (ER), even if it hurts itself.
"If we accept fish experience pain, then this has great significance for how we treat them," Sneddon says. "Care should be taken when handling fish to avoid damaging theirs sensitive skin and they should be humanely caught and killed."
1.What can we learn about fish?
A.They are insensitive to pain. B.They are able to sense pain.
C.They won't react to painkillers. D.Their brain is the first to send pain signals.
2.What will a fish do when its lips get hurt?
A.It might rub its lips. B.It will keep its mouth open.
C.It will swim around like crazy. D.It will keep eating to forget pain.
3.What is the significance of the study according to Sneddon?
A.People will treat fish in a kinder way.
B.People can understand evolution better.
C.People can develop more drugs to save fish.
D.People will think of more ways to catch fish.
4.What does the underlined part "add up" probably mean?
A.Disappear. B.Put forward.
C.Make sense. D.Happen.
I needed to get some money so, after Christmas, I took a job in the clothes department at Graham’s for the first fortnight of the January sale. I can’t say that I enjoyed it, but it was an experience I’ll never forget. I could never understand why there were so many things in the sales; where did they all come from? Now I know the secret! Firstly, there is the special winter stock and the stock that people buy all the year round; some of these things are slightly reduced. Secondly, there are the summer clothes they couldn’t sell last year; these are heavily reduced to clear them. Thirdly, there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales; these are put out at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale. Clever! Lastly, they buy in “seconds” (clothes not in perfect condition) for the sale and they are sold very cheaply.
When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale, there was already a queue around three sides of the building. This made me very nervous. When the big moment arrived to open the doors, the security guards, looking less confident than usual, came up to them, keys in hand. The moment they had unlocked the doors, they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd charged in. I couldn’t believe my eyes; this wasn’t shopping, it was a battlefield! One poor lady couldn’t keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind. Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes, colors and styles they wanted. Quarrels broke out. Mothers were using their small children to crawl(爬行) through people’s legs and get hold of things they couldn’t get near themselves.
Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing clothes under my nose, each wanting to be the first served. Where had the famous English Queue gone? The whole day continued like that, but I kept my temper! I was taking money hand over fist and began to realize why, twice a year, Graham’s were happy to turn their expensive store into a battlefield like this. In the sale fever, people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying. As long as it was a bargain it was OK. You won’t believe this but as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours. Then I had dinner and went back to bed, fearing the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale.
1.What kind of clothes is likely to be sold 5% cheaper?
A.Last summer’s clothes. B.Clothes not in perfect condition.
C.Clothes bought in specially for the sales. D.Clothes for winter.
2.In the author’s opinion, why were Graham’s happy to make their expensive store into “Battlefield”?
A.There were too many clothes and they wanted to clear them in the sales.
B.They were eager to show that they were clever at doing business.
C.They could take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes.
D.They wanted to make more money by having sales.
3.Which of the following statements is true?
A.The customers gave up the queuing for which the English are famous.
B.The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted.
C.Small children enjoyed crawling through people’s legs.
D.The security guards were fearless of the crowd.
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.The Best Bargain. B.Hunting For a Job.
C.Sale Fever. D.A Pleasant Fortnight.